Backburn
| Backburn | ||||||||||
| Player: @MajikMyke | ||||||||||
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| Biographical Data | ||||||||||
| Real Name: | Kurt Kai | |||||||||
| Known Aliases: | ||||||||||
| Gender: | Male | |||||||||
| Species: | Human | |||||||||
| Ethnicity: | Causcasian | |||||||||
| Place of Birth: | Perth, Scotland | |||||||||
| Base of Operations: | Millenium City | |||||||||
| Relatives: | ||||||||||
| Characteristics | ||||||||||
| Age: | ||||||||||
| Height: | 5 " 8 | |||||||||
| Weight: | ||||||||||
| Eyes: | Brown | |||||||||
| Hair: | Red-brown | |||||||||
| Complexion: | White | |||||||||
| Physical Build: | Average, Fit | |||||||||
| Physical Features: | ||||||||||
| Status | ||||||||||
| Fame: |
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| Alignment: |
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| Identity: | Secret | |||||||||
| Years Active: | ||||||||||
| Citizenship: | America, England | |||||||||
| Occupation: | Pyrotechnic Artist | |||||||||
| Education: | Blacklisted from every major College | |||||||||
| Marital Status: | Divorced | |||||||||
| Known Powers and Abilities | ||||||||||
| Genius Intellect (Non-Super), | ||||||||||
| Equipment and Paraphernalia | ||||||||||
| Firefists, BurnerSuit, Waveboots, Trusty helmet | ||||||||||
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| Non-Physical Attributes | |||||||||
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Psionics |
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| Telepathy |
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| Sorcery |
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Technology |
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Knowledge |
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Bravery |
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| MaekadaBox created by @Maekada | |||||||||
 The author of this article has marked this as a creative work, and would prefer that other users not edit it. Please respect this, and unless repairing a typo, spelling, or other minor technical error, think of this page as read-only. |
Contents
Early Life
Parentage
"Mommy dearest was in the cleanup crews after the tragedy. That's where she met my father...I don't really want to say too much more" - Backburn, discussing his life to Defender shortly after his career began
Edna Kai returned to Millenium city a few years later, with young Kurtis by her hand. His father was a rich businessman, a genius who helped in the reconstruction effort that birthed Millenium City. Wanting to save face, he rejected the child as his own.
Childhood
Needless to say, Kurt inherited his father's genius. He often got involved in insane shemes that would usually leave the house wrecked (if not the street) and quickly earned the ire of the neighborhood. In school, he wasn't bullied like most geniuses - he was just ignored.
Friendship
During high school he met another young genius, Derrik Krio. Sure, one was into sci-fi and blowing stuff up while the other was obsessed with fantasy and icecream, but the two of them were both outcasts - and that was enough to form the basis of a strong friendship. Others came and went in their little group, but Kurt and Derrik were always there.
Towards the final year, the University of Detroit put out a scholarship funded by Harmon industries, for the brightest students in the world. Whoever could pass an specially crafted exam would earn the scholarship - and there was only one spot available per district. Kurt cheated, convincing Derrik to pass notes. No one was the wiser...and Kurt got the scholarship.
At this point we should mention something - Derrik came from a troubled home. Kurt felt guilty of what he had done. Realising that if he goes, Derrik would be stuck in a hellish household his entirelife, Kurt finally decided to own up. Derrik got the scholarship, and Kurt was blacklisted from every major university and college for life.
Adulthood
Years later, Kurt made a name for himself as a professional pyrotechnic artist. Not only was he working in major hollywood productions (including a film about the battle of Detroit) and gigs at concerts and sporting events, but he even performed beautiful artistic displays using fire. Crowds are constantly wooed and awed, but by the next few days they forget all about that guy with the fire.
Kurt didn't care.
Never thinking too much about superheroics, Kurt focused on making ends meet and doing what he loves. Even today, he doesn't stop practising the art whenever he has the time.
The Call
One stormy night, Kurt ran into his old pal Derrik outside city hall. It seemed Derrik was promoting a new 'Plasma Hazard suit'; an outfit made from a nomex-silicon weave that could absorb and distribute thermal energy using a thin plasma field, making it a lifesaver for firefighters. It could even be calibrated to keep a wearer cool in hot enviroments, or keep them warm in the cold be sapping heat from the air around themselves. Derrik invited Kurt to see the demonstration first hand.
During the display, the PRIMUS volunteer in the suit was able to endure a powerful blast from a flamethrower, without breaking a sweat underneath the suit. The crowd applaused. Kurt was proud to see his friend come such a long way.
It came time to test the suit in a cold enviroment. Derrik brought out the FreezoRay Glove, another experimental tool designed for rescue operations, worn like a sleek glove but hooked via clumsy cables to a massive generator & nitrogen tank.
This time the test wasn't so flash. The suit started to freeze solid. Suddenly the generator caught ablaze. To the audience's astonishment, Krio ran out in a second suit and actually absorbed the fire, redirecting it through a rigged pipe into the sky.
The crowd applaused - including one Colonel Bashaw of PRIMUS. Krio seemed uneasy when the esteemed Colonel personally congradulated him, but few noticed...save for Kai.
Kai said goodbye to Krio - the proffessor promising him a beer the next day.
In the middle of that night, Kurt gets a call from Krio...nervous, out of breath. He's got no one to turn too, fearing for his life. Kurt tries to calm him down, it doesn't work...and then gunshots ring out on the other end. Kurt calls the MCPD immediatley. They arrive on the scene - Krio's penthouse is ablaze. A burning body was thrown out fifty stories, smashing into the ground as a pile of ash.
The Career begins
"Excuse the pun, but you just had to bring on the heat, didn't ya?" - Backburn to a squadron of VIPER soldiers on his first adventure
He couldn't believe it. His best friend dead, left to die...and the killer still at large. Most suspected VIPER to be behind the hit.
Taking what he knew of his pyrotechnics, as well as a huge source of knowledge on technology, Kurt put together the Mk 1 'Firefists' and 'Wave-Boots'. Using a stolen police scanner, he finds out the whereabouts of a VIPER shipment going down at the docks.
Combined with a rough attire he raids the VIPER shipment - practically setting himself on fire when one of the gloves malfunctions. That very fire ended up burning the VIPER's warehouse to the ground, causing a complete surprise. Kurt makes a run for it, frantically activating his Wave-boots -
Always a few hiccups
And promtly crash landing once...twice...thrice during the getaway, only losing the angry VIPERs by pure luck. The boots could hardly support his weight and were melting the asphalt underneath his feet. Let's not mention the gloves again. The very next morning he went back to the drawing board.
The Mk II Firefists were a sufficient improvement and the Wave-boots really only needed some basic training, but his three biggest problems were glaring him in the face -
1. He needed a powersource for the boots, to give them an extra-oomf. 2. He needed a helmet. 3. He needed a way to not catch on fire.
Of course, his first adventure also caught alot of press -
In Bold: "IDIOT SUPERHERO SETS HIMSELF ON FIRE" Tiny letters: "also stops viper's latest scheme"
He was soon confronted by Dr Silverback. Vigilante-ism is looked down upon by the likes of the Champions, but Backburn quickly made a point that he is no vigilante - he doesn't want to kill Derrik Krio's assailant, but simply ask them - why? It's the same thing he'll ask every evil-doer he throws behind bars or, in the worst case scenario, six-feet under.
Silverback liked what he heard...after all, Krio was one of his esteemed colleauges. Using his connections within PRIMUS, Silverback has one of two Plasma Hazard suits delivered to Backburn. It's perfect for Kurt, who dyes it red and white and takes to the skies - knowing that someday he'll find closure for his late friend.
But the truth will blow him away.
Career
Qularr Invasion
He was only a few months into his careern when the Qularr attacked. Backburn snesed a great oppurtunity and, teaming up with the brutish warrior known as Krag Skullcleaver, launched a counter attack against the Qularr while other heroes were busy defending Silverback's cannon. Using his ingenuity, Backburn helped amplify the Pulse Cannon's power just enough to finally destroy the mothership.
A lead on Krio
"Your friend had many dirty secrets, and it won't be long before you discover the biggest one yet" - Clyde Von Schoultz to Backburn, before his defeat during Operation Headhunter.
As the days passed by, Backburn soon found himself shuffling between the job he loves, and the job he must do. The lead on VIPER revealed a connection to Hunter Patriot. Rumors persisted that Krio was sending weapons to the canadian terrorist group, inadvertantly assisting VIPER in the process. Backburn didn't believe this for a moment, and made his way for Canada. He ran into an oversized lizard named Spike, who gladly accompanied him into the Candian Wilderness.
They arrived shortly after the Crisis died down. Working with Justicar and Force Station Steelhead, Backburn upgraded his turbine to work harder in the cold - and provide him with a greater energy output. Together with Spike they worked against Hunter Patriot's forces, earning the ire of both the terrorists and VIPER. Backburn himself was quite shocked with Spike's callous brutality - Backburn's goal was to have someone alive to interrogate, and with Spike on his side here were none left.
The two soon got over that, but Defender needed their help back home. It seems Backburn's personal quest had to wait.
Aftershock
Shortly after their tour of Canada, Backburn and Spike were called by UNTIL to investigate a disturbance at Camp Lantern. The pair were seperated by mortar fire, forcing one another to fight through the dense jungles - taking on VIPER mortar teams and anti-air. More than a few armoured vehicles were blown to smithereens by Backburn's high-powered fireballs, with the jungle soon catching alight. Backburn himself was nearly killed when a rocket forced him to crashland, but Spike came to rescue - practically tearing the heavily armoured VIPERs apart.
To their suprise, they had fought their way to the fort. Taking it back from the Vipers was no easy task, made all the more complicated when the aces showed up. Backburn and Spike frantically worked to keep the defenses up - but Spike was cornered.
Knowing the risk of trying out a new technique, Backburn flew right into the middle of the assembled squad of vipers and unleashed an explosive plasma wave, setting the aces alight. Spike jumped into the foray and helped finish them off, the two now on their last breath just as Ripper showed his ugly face.
In what was a hectic battle, Backburn and Spike managed to subdue ripper long enough for UNTIL's cavalry to arrive, chaining the brute up as the two heroes ventured inside.
It was quite a shock for Backburn - this was the first time he had ever encountered such a strange foe like these interdimensional horrors. And trying to save the UNTIL sodiers in the tower proved to be a disaster. With the Kings of Edom showing up and swallowing the tower whole, Backburn and Spike bareley outran the dark cloud. It was there they were forced into cohersion with the Kings of Edom, but in the end the two heroes pulled through.
But the cries of the UNTIL psychics being consumed by the smog still haunts Backburn to this day.
Meeting the Destroids
While putting a stop to an illegal fireworks display in Chinatown, Backburn saved a young girl whose father hadn't returned home from work. Backburn assumed the father was working overtime, until the girl pointed out that her father was a high-profile scientist working for "something" Inc.
With the help of his ally, the enigmatic Dark Wizard, Backburn reached the high-profile bunker and encountered the Destroids. They were siphoning the data from old computers and attempting to capture the scientists. As Backburn and the Dark Wizard fought through the bunker and recovered whatever files they could, it quickly became apparent that these destroids were after some data relating to 'Project Chamber'. Rescuing the scientists, all experts in AI technology, the pair found out that the Chamber project was buried under a heap of red tape and fabricated stories. Whatever the truth was, "something" Inc. made sure it was forgotten.
Abilities
Backburn possesses no superpowers, but he has inherited a brilliant mind from his biological father. It's with this mind that he's been able to craft the tools he uses to serve justice to the scum of the world. He's also relentless, unable to give up under duress. He's also very stubborn, so good luck changing his mind when it's set on one task. It's this tough spirit and stamina provided by training that allows Backburn to keep on going long after many lesser men would give up.
Technology
All of Backburn's tech is fueled by the earth's natural gasses found in our air, and can be bolstered by heat, including solar panels. In certain scenarios such as space an alternative source is present for Backburn's tech to work.
Firefists
Homebuilt gauntlets that generate a combustible mixture of gasses taken from the air, using part of the suit's plasma field to keep the fireballs in shape when they're launched. Of course, upon impact the plasma would burst against the target, causing the two gasses to mix and ignite. Much of the gas also isn't contained fully in the plasma field, so it creates the burning effect as it flies through the air. With this tech Backburn can build up a massive fireball, or even fine tune the mixutre of gasses and the shape of the field for a variety of tasks. Finally, the gloves allow him to 'steer' when flying by propulsing pressured heat waves from the palm and fingertips.
Wave-Boots
Utilising pressured heat wave technology, the wave-boots propel Backburn through the sky. They also act as a guidance for the flames he creates so they don't overwhelm him, and work together with the suit when delivering a pyre attack.
BurnerSuit
Using a salvaged light power armour turbine built into Krio's Plasma Hazard suit, the Burner suit provides both protection and power for Backburn's flames, distributing the thermal energy to the firefists. He can also keep flames up around his body, and expulse them outwards in a powerful Pyre when surrounded.
Rogues Gallery
Spoiler Warning
The following details are about a player-created storyline, or is information currently unrevealed about a character.
Please do not use this information ICly unless given permission to do so.
(Identity withheld)
A master of ice. Uses a combination of magic and technology.
The Host
An advanced AI put into the most advanced suit of power-armour ever built, promtly controlled by an extra-dimensional entity now trapped within.
Kurtis Pluto/Backblast
A parrelel Kurt Kai from Multifaria. While Kai is honest, Pluto is decietful and cunning. Under the guise of a public hero he plots to usurp Shadow Destroyer and destroy our Universe...for science.
More to come!
RP Info
- A scientific genius who never got adequate college education. While not super-intelligent, he comes pretty close.
- Experienced researcher working at the Ren Cen R&D lab. He would likley meet many other heroes who work there.
- 'Powers' are completley technology based. Hence his extensive work in the Inventions area of R&D.
- In his civillian identity, would put on pyrotechnical displays at theatres and nightclubs, including Caprice. Likley some heroes/alter egos have seen one of Kurt Kai's shows before.
